How Alabama Gymnastics Uses Spikeball to Grow Closer

A fun game used outside of practice and before meets has helped developed team chemistry for the Crimson Tide.

Gary Cosby Jr.-The Tuscaloosa News-USA TODAY NETWORK

Alabama gymnastics is more than just a team. It’s more than cheering on the sidelines or clapping for each other after routines. The bond that the team has is like a sisterhood and will last a lifetime. 

And one of the things they use to form that bond might surprise you. The team plays spikeball outside of practice, in the gym and before meets (like seen in the pictures below prior to the Georgia meet. It brings them even closer together all while having fun. The gymnasts have to work together and support each other in spikeball, which can translate over into gymnastics. 

Getting loose here in Athens💫#RollTide | #MTM pic.twitter.com/iawqPq7zre

— Alabama Gymnastics (@BamaGymnastics) February 17, 2023

Pretty much everyone on the team, including head coach Ashley Johnston and assistant coach Justin Spring, play the light-hearted game, but apparently, some of the gymnasts are better than others. The Alabama head coach participated back in the fall, but after losing quickly hasn't been asked back to join a spikeball team.

Seniors Ella Burgess and Mati Waligora said Lilly Hudson and Gabby Gladieux are the best at spikeball. Waligora joked that the team has been practicing for so long, they are ready for a tournament. 

While spikeball is a game that really helps with team chemistry, the group is connected in many other ways. The team often has Sunday dinners, goes to football games together and hypes each other up beyond the world of gymnastics.

“It’s those little things that show that we have so much love and support for each other,” Waligora said. “It’s really what sets us apart I think, and it’s a special bond that we have. And it’s a bunch of fun here.”

As a former Alabama gymnast herself, Johnston believes that the gymnasts will not only be teammates for four years, but for life. She said it is critical for the team to have a support system that can carry them throughout the tough sport of gymnastics and after college.

"I love that this group has really embraced that concept and that they are there for each other," Johnston said. 

She even connected spikeball to gymnastics and talked about how the game has led the gymnasts in a positive direction.

“It’s helped them develop our vibe in how we compete which is to really go after it and to be competitive, but to do it in a really fun, playful way whereas in the end you can look back and enjoy the entire process," Johnston said. 

While spikeball and gymnastics are completely different, the energy that the gymnasts put into both of them makes their connection even stronger. The sisterhood of this team does make Alabama gymnastics stand apart, and their constant support towards one another shows throughout each performance.

The team chemistry will continue to be important as the Crimson Tide enters the final two weeks of the regular season and prepares to make a run at an SEC title and the NCAA postseason. 

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